


You & Me (and the Rest of Us): Freshman Year

by youcalledmesimon



Series: You & Me (and the Rest of Us) [2]
Category: Carry On - Rainbow Rowell, Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling
Genre: Alternate Universe - High School, Alternate Universe - Non-Magical, Draco Malfoy in Denial, F/F, F/M, M/M, Multi, Not Oblivious Harry, Other Additional Tags to Be Added, Pining Tyrannus Basilton "Baz" Pitch, Simon Snow is an Angel, for once lol, obviously
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-12-03
Updated: 2018-07-25
Packaged: 2019-02-08 22:27:13
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Underage
Chapters: 4
Words: 8,053
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/12874344
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/youcalledmesimon/pseuds/youcalledmesimon
Summary: A non-magical American high school AU. There will be lots of fights, lots of bonding, lots of kisses and maybe a little angst and a little smut. Who knows?“Just thinking.”“‘Bout?”“When we first met,” Simon answered with a smile. He paused then teased, “You were such an ass."*there's a prologue! not necessary to understand the story but it gives a little context!





	1. The First Day - Baz

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> It's Baz's first day of high school (as well as everybody else's)!

Basilton Grimm-Pitch had resigned himself to being known as “that gay British guy”. But actually, he was excited at the prospect. He was going to be one of a kind when he moved to America for a fresh start. New country, new me, you know? In England, people had always thought he was attractive and mysterious and super straight. And for a while, Baz tried to convince himself that he was, for his father’s sake. In fact, he had dated every girl in the class just to try and prove/make himself hetero, but to no avail. Baz had come to realize that there was no changing the fact, and so in this new country, he was ready to accept his queerness, embrace it, really. So imagine his surprise when one of the first people he meets in America is gayer and possibly more British than he is. Well, the boy was at least posher than Baz. 

.:.

On the first day of high school, Baz was strolling through the aisles of the library before class, when one of the books caught his eyes. The spine read “How Beautiful the Ordinary” in small, green font and underneath that, “Twelve Stories of Identity” in a smaller, blue font. He pulled it out of its home on the shelf and was reading the back cover when he felt someone next to him giving him a thorough once over. Glancing up, he let his eyes lazily rake over the girl’s curvy body. From her neatly groomed toenails framed in heels, up over smooth legs that were tucked under her short black skirt, up over her too tight blouse with a few unbuttoned buttons, and then up to her perfectly painted red lips that rested in a smirk. 

“And who might you be?” At first, Baz didn’t register what she had said, let alone that she was even asking him a question. He was too busy watching her flawless lips form the words when he noticed that she had perfectly straight white teeth. Of course, she did. Damn, Americans. His eyes finally met the girl’s and she raised a magnificently well-groomed eyebrow. 

“Gay,” he answered shortly before turning back to the smallish book in his hands. Baz could feel the girl’s entire demeanor change. She stopped sticking her chest and arse out, uncrossed her legs and slouched a bit.

“Thank God,” the girl sighed, with more than a little relief. 

“Pardon?” Baz inquired with a slight glance at the girl. She shook her head and Baz watched her short hair follow her movements, then fall right back into place. The back of the girl’s hand was now in Baz’s line of sight. He took it and gently placed a kiss on it, instincts kicking in, as she introduced herself. 

“The name’s Pansy. Parkinson.”

“Pleasure,” Baz returned. “Basilton Grimm-Pitch, but everyone just calls me Baz.”

“I noticed you have an accent, are you from England?” Pansy questioned. Baz grinned widely. Everything was going swell. He came out already, introduced himself without her questioning his name and now they had established he was foreign. This was going much smoother than he had thought it would.

“Yeah, I-”

Pansy cut him off. “That’s cool. My best friend is also from England! He moved here in the sixth grade so he still has that cute accent like you do. He’s gay, as well. Even if he won’t admit to it, yet.” She spoke with a large grin on her perfect lips, showing off her perfect teeth.  

“Oh,” Baz responded, deflating slightly. Well, that put a dent in things. If people were to ever ask, ‘Hey, you know that gay British guy?’, others would have to respond ‘Which one?’, and well, that just wasn’t very one of a kind. 

Pansy seemed ignorant to the problem that was consuming Baz’s attention at the moment and quickly grabbed one of his hands in hers, dragging him after her towards the corner of the library. “Come on, you should meet him. I have the feeling that the two of you will get along really well!” 

There was a boy at the round table in the corner, enraptured by a book, his glasses barely resting on the tip of his thin nose. The first thing Baz had noticed about the boy was the whitest blond hair that he had ever seen. Then he noticed how pristine the boy looked. His posture was perfect and he was dressed sharply in a crisp, starchy white shirt, a gray argyle sweater vest, and beige dress pants that fell precisely to his sharp ankle bones. And that’s when Baz noticed how skinny and pale the boy was. It looked as if he hadn’t been fed in a while. But ironically enough, he was chewing on the tip of his finger, as if he were very concerned about something in his novel. Pansy cleared her throat loudly and the boy startled. 

“Draco, darling, look! I’ve made a new friend!” she exclaimed happily, nudging Baz towards the table. Draco peered at the pair, made a vague noise of acknowledgment, then returned to his book. Pansy pulled out a chair from the table and made herself comfortable. “He’s a Brit, like you!”

“Is he now?” the boy, Draco, asked obviously not very interested. Pansy shot a quick glance at Baz and noticed he was awkwardly standing close by. 

“Baz, honey, take a seat!” She motioned to the table and Baz gently pulled out a chair and tried to sit down, his bag still on his back, and the book still in his hands, making the whole ordeal quite awkward to watch. Baz watched as Pansy rolled her dark eyes framed by long fake lashes at him before she turned her attention back to Draco. “He’s also gay, like you!” 

Draco snapped his book shut angrily and yanked his glasses off. “Pansy, no matter how much you insist, I am not gay!” Pansy just smirked knowingly, and Draco rolled his eyes, clearly annoyed. Then he finally turned his attention to Baz. Their gray eyes met, a clash of smoke and mirrors. “Nice eyes,” Draco commented, jokingly. Baz flushed slightly.

“Thanks. You, too,” he responded quietly, before looking away.

“Baz, huh? Short for Basilton Grimm-Pitch?” 

Baz looked at Draco bewildered. “How did you-”

“My father took it upon himself to make sure I was well informed. He made me learn and memorize influential British figures and their families, in case I were to ever meet one. Never have. That is, until today,” Draco shared folding his glasses, and then placing them to hang off his shirt collar. 

“But, why would your fath-”

“My father is a politician. He works the system in any way that he can, and he wants me to do the same.” Draco seemed to hold a bit of a resentful and sarcastic tone about the subject, and a bitter look crossed his face.

“Oh. Did you move here because of your father’s job?” Baz asked, finally able to finish a question. Draco simply nodded. “Same here. My father, as you know, is the founder and CEO of a major oil company, Grexco. They’re opening up a branch here and they want my dad to be here to help set it all up, so he had to move and my family came with.”

“Well, that’s fun!” Pansy chimed in.

“Not really, Pans,” Draco chirped smartly, before opening his book again, obviously finished with the conversation.

Pansy rolled her eyes, something she seemed to do quite often, before turning her attention towards Baz.

“So when did you move?” she asked, trying to make conversation.

“Beginning of June. But it’s funny, you know, I’ve been here for two months, and I’ve hardly seen the city,” Baz replied.

“Well, one day Blaise and I will have to give you a tour.” She perked up. “Say. Where is Blaise?” She seemed to be carefully searching the library.

“Probably off with some slut,” Draco answered without looking up.

“Ooh! That reminds me!” She leaned forward, almost conspiratorially, and dropped her voice to a whisper. “Harry Potter is bi.”

“I call bull shit,” Draco responded, putting down his book. 

“No, no! It’s true,” Pansy assured, a bit too enthusiastically. “He came out this summer! Over Instagram! Posted a real artsy photo with a long caption explaining how he felt and how he discovered himself. And plus, I’ve heard from a lot of people talking about just how good he was at “discovering” his bisexuality. All summer long. With various people. ”

“Yes, well. See? He’s only identifying as bi so that he can whore himself out to anything that walks, like Blaise.”

Someone dropped into the chair next to Baz. “You know that I’m straight, Draco.”

“You’re not even half as straight as all the dicks that you suck,” Draco retorted. The boy let out a hearty laugh before he noticed Baz.

“Blaise Zabini. You are?” The dark skinned boy had a well-defined jaw, full lips and kind dark eyes that held a glimmer of mischief and a certain cleverness. Baz let his eyes wander over Blaise’s body. The boy was well built, lean and muscular, and Baz could see the veins running up and down his arms.  That’s a turn-on. He was definitely handsome, that’s for certain, and he was holding out a strong hand to Baz.

“Basilton Grimm-Pitch. You can just call me Baz, though.” Baz took the hand and shook it firmly, just like his father had taught him when he was younger. 

“Well, it’s a pleasure to meet you, Basilton,” Blaise Zabini declared with a wide grin. “Pansy, love, come. I’ll walk to you your first class.” He stood and held a hand out to her.

“What a gentleman,” she muttered with a roll of her eyes. “Give me just a sec. Baz, do you have your schedule yet?” Baz nodded, pulled it out of his bag and held it to Pansy. “Oh, look at that! We’ve got almost all of our classes together!” She passed Baz’s schedule to Blaise and then pulled out her phone, handing that to Baz. “Put your number in,” she demanded. So he did as he was told.

“My thanks to your father, Draco,” Blaise remarked, still checking over Baz’s schedule.

“Why? What’d he do this time?” Draco questioned, looking up from the book he had picked up again sometime over the course of the conversation. 

“All of our schedules are very similar. I’m sure some of that was your father’s doing,” he answered with a small grin.

“Well, I’ll tell him that his meddling is much appreciated, Blaise,” Draco responded sarcastically, as he rolled his eyes, before returning to his book.

“Well, we’ll see you all during second period,” Blaise announced. “Till then.” Baz watched Blaise and Pansy saunter off, arm in arm. Draco finally dropped his book into his bag and turned towards Baz.

“As much as I love those two, I don’t. They know exactly every way to get on my nerves, which is why I’m excited that you’re here.” He informed Baz, not actually looking all that excited. “But just you wait till you meet the rest of the crew, they’re worse.” There was a pause before Draco asked, “So you’re gay, what’s that like?”

Baz broke into an easy smile before he responded, “Like you wouldn’t know.”

Draco let out a laugh. “Oh, fuck off. Nevermind then, let’s talk about something else. What extracurriculars are you doing this year?”

“Orchestra, music theory and football. What about you?”

“Latin, French, and gym,” Draco answered. He paused. “Wait, I’m sorry, but did you say football? No offense, but it kind of looks like you would be crushed the instant you walk out on the field.”

“Oh, er, not American football! I could never.” Baz assured him. He finally took the backpack off his back and placed it in the chair next to him. “I play... soccer?”

“That makes more sense,” Draco said, with a breath of relief, as the thought of poor lanky Baz playing rough and tumbly American football made him nervous. Well, the thought of anyone playing American football made him nervous. “So, orchestra. What instrument do you play?”

“Violin.”

“That suits you.”

“Thanks.” There was a slight break in the conversation before Baz continued. “Why are you taking two languages?”

“Latin seemed interesting because it makes up so many roots for the English language, so I thought it might be helpful when we take the SAT and all those other tests. French because my mother taught me when I was younger and I have quite the love for the language.”

“That’s neat.” 

The lull in the conversation was evident but promptly ignored. At that moment the library doors swung open and a group of rambunctious teens walked in, all laughing and joking with one another. Baz watched the group sit down at a table, but only one of them really caught Baz’s attention. He had the curliest blond hair, not white blond like Draco, but like his hair had been spun from gold. He had a few moles dotted randomly over his face and neck. Baz wanted so badly to kiss them and then discover if there were more anywhere else on the boy’s body. The boy smiled, no, beamed at something someone else said and Baz melted in his chair. That smile was radiant, and Baz would do anything to see it again. 

“Ugh,” he heard Draco spit with such disgust. “I retract my earlier statement. Harry Potter and his gang are much worse than my friends.”

“Which one is Harry Potter?” Baz asked, barely able to peel his eyes away from the beautiful boy. 

“The tan-ish looking one. He’s half Indian, caused a lot of trouble with the in-laws, so I heard. He’s made it on the football team this year, but that’s pretty much all he has going for him. I mean, he barely passes in his classes, and he’s quite rude and improper. He’s a bloody idiot, but everyone else seems to like him and his bloody green eyes and his unruly hair.”

“Mmm-hmm,” Baz hummed, not really paying attention to Draco’s ranting. “And what about the rest of them?”

“What about them?” Draco asked.

“Who are they?” Baz had to find out the boy’s name. Had to see if his name matched his beauty which was highly improbable.

“Oh,  well first, the ginger, is a Weasley. He’s the second to youngest of seven. Like geez, papa weasel keep it in your pants. Ron is with Hermione at the moment, which I’m sure Pansy isn’t thrilled about. Hermione Granger is the black girl. She’s the smartest in our class, right above me and Penelope Bunce, who I’m sure you’ll meet later. I admire her brains but she’s just a bit too bossy for me. And the last boy is Simon Snow,” Draco explained, pointing and motioning to people at the table.

“Simon Snow? What a ridiculous name,” Baz scoffed. It really was, but that didn’t mean Baz didn’t still absolutely adore the boy and his laughable name. “What do you know about him?”

Draco quirked an eyebrow, but answered, “His father is a maniac and his mother is an angel on Earth. He grew up an orphan and was in foster homes for a while before they adopted him a few years ago. Even though he’s been through a lot of shit, he’s a good guy. He’s very kindhearted and always looking out for others. He was always nice to me.”

Before Baz could say anything, the library doors opened again and a girl walked in. She was angelic. She looked as if she walked straight off of a magazine cover. The most perfect long blonde hair and a brilliant smile. Her large eyes were a kind brown, but Baz could see something cold just resting on the inside.

“Ah, about time she joined,” Draco commented. “That’s Simon’s girlfriend, Agatha Wellbelove. They’re the Golden Couple. They’ve been dating since the sixth grade.”

Baz watched as the girl walked to join the group at the table, everyone else in the library had their eyes on her. She gently touched Simon’s shoulder, and when he saw who it was, he stood with a kind smile and kissed her. Baz turned away then and saw that Draco had been watching him with a knowing expression.

“Well, come on then. Let’s check out that book for you. Before class, I’ll introduce you to Theo.” They stood and walked to the library's front desk.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> yay! thanks for reading! hope you enjoyed! next chapter coming out eventually!


	2. The First Day - Simon

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Simon meets Baz! Watch the sparks fly! <3

Kissing Agatha always sent Simon off on a tangent.

It wasn’t that he didn’t like Agatha, because he did. He really liked her, as a friend, and that was the problem. He had noticed that something just didn’t feel quite right. He noticed it every single time that they hugged or kissed or held hands. There was no fire. And who knows? Maybe it’s because they had been together for three years now and the fire had died. But somewhere, deep inside, Simon knew that he had never felt anything special for Agatha.

He had done as everyone expected perfect, little sixth grade Simon to do. He blushed and nervously asked perfect, little sixth grade Agatha if she wanted to be his girlfriend, while all of his friends cheered him on. And she played her part well, too. She blushed too and said ‘okay’, while all of her friends cheered her on. And that was the start of Simon and Agatha. 

They did everything together because everyone was watching and expecting them to. Initially, Simon thought that Agatha was just swept up in the crowd effort of their relationship and that she didn’t really feel strongly for Simon. But as time has passed, Simon noticed that when she touched him, it was more tender, more caring, more real. And that terrified Simon because while he was still faking it, Agatha had gotten attached. And it was only right that she had. They had done everything together for three years. Simon couldn’t expect Agatha to abide by his unspoken agreement of not feeling things for each other. 

He knew that he had to break up with her, and soon. He couldn’t drag this out forever. He couldn’t always be the Golden Boy everyone wanted him to be. He was tired of being everyone’s perfect ideal. But he didn’t want Agatha to get hurt because of his cowardice to mess up. Yes, yes, he’d break up with her. Eventually. When he felt the time was right. Which, you know, may be a while.

After he had greeted Agatha with a kiss, they sat down in adjacent chairs and she intertwined their hands with a glowing smile. He smiled back at her, like he always did, then a movement caught his eye.

Simon watched the two boys, curiously, as they checked out books then strolled out of the library. One with hair paler than snow and the other, hair darker than night. They made an odd pair, but they seemed to match. Both willowy and elegant with a slight arrogance to them. Simon had noticed that Draco had gotten scarily thin, and sadly he could guess why.

Earlier on the bus ride to school, he’d overheard Pansy whispering, anxiously, to him, asking if he was okay. Draco answered her very shortly.  _ ‘Just family issues.’ _ And that had been all he had to say on the subject. And Simon knew all about familial problems, both his and Draco’s. He’d have to check on him later, that is if Draco felt like talking to him.

But, Simon had also noticed the other boy though, mainly because he was pretty certain that the boy was new. When the pair had walked past, Simon had just barely caught a glimpse of him. He looked like a… well, he looked like a vampire. Every single feature on his face was sharp and severe. His black hair was slicked back, only to reveal a sharp widow’s peak, emphasizing his pale face. A serious, professional, ‘don’t mess with me’ look was his set expression, which would scare off most anyone, yet you couldn’t help but stare at the boy that resembled a magnificent statue made of marble. 

“Who are you drooling over now, Simon?” Harry teased. Simon shook his head slightly to pull himself back before he smiled good-naturedly.

“Oh, I was just looking at that guy with Draco.” Harry’s face faltered slightly at the mention of Draco’s name. “I think, he’s new,” Simon concluded.

“Am I the only one who thought he looked like a vampire?” Ron asked, nudging Hermione, who ignored him and continued to write.

“Maybe, he is,” Harry responded, joking along. 

“Don’t be ridiculous, Harry,” Agatha scolded. “If he were really a vampire, he wouldn’t be at school during the day, in the light!” The friends all chuckled and Ron quickly jumped in.

“Well, you don’t know, Ags! Maybe he’s on some special meds!”

“Like ‘Day’quil?” Hermione asked wittily, glancing up from her notebook. Harry snorted, and the rest of the table laughed.

“Good one, Mione!” Ron informed her with a proud smile, causing her to blush and look away shyly before continuing with her writing. 

“Alright, guys,” Simon tried to cut in seriously, but his laughs contradicted him. “Leave the poor kid alone. He probably hears those kinds of jokes all the time.”

“Good Guy Simon,” Harry exaggerated, with an appreciative jokiness. “Always jumping in to stick up for those who can’t do it themselves.” And then Simon’s smile didn’t feel so good-natured or real anymore. 

.:.

“Mr. Snow and Mr. Grimm Pitch,” the teacher stated, motioning to the pair of desks near the back of the room.

The other boy took his bag to his and Simon’s new seats. Of course, the teacher had paired him up with the new kid. He’d probably heard all about how wonderful, kind Simon was from his middle school teachers. He probably thought that Simon would be the most welcoming to the new kid that was all the way from London. And he was damn right. Simon would be the nicest, most polite person to him because that’s what people expected, and he just didn’t have it in him to be rude anyway.

But of course, that didn’t mean the new kid would have a nice bone in his body. (Actually, the dark-haired boy probably had really nice bones, he looked very healthy.) The point is just because Simon had every intention to be kind, that didn’t mean the other boy did.

“Simon Snow,” Simon offered, his hand outstretched. The other boy looked at him bewildered for only a second before turning away quickly, sticking his nose slightly in the air.

“Basilton Grimm Pitch, but I guess you can just call me Baz,” he answered. Simon looked down at his rejected hand and slowly pulled it back into his lap. 

“Alright. Well, it’s, um, nice to meet you,” Simon tried, peering at the boy who refused to look at him. Baz only made a slight humming noise that let Simon know he had heard him. Then they sat in an uncomfortable silence until the teacher stood at the front of the class, and regained everyone’s attention.

“I’m your teacher. You may call me Professor Snape. Welcome to biology.”

Simon glanced over at Baz when he groaned quietly. They made quick eye contact before Baz blushed lightly and explained, “Draco told me to be careful around him. Apparently, this guy is a royal stick in the mud.”

Simon’s face split into a large grin. “Interesting that he would say that.” Confusion flashed over Baz’s face before Simon explained. “You know, since, that’s his godfather and all.”

Baz let out a small laugh before he seemed to remember that he was supposed to be an asshole, and turned to the board, face as stoic as ever. But it was too late, Simon had seen that smile, however short it was, and he was hooked. What a strange feeling it was to see someone who always looked angry, smile, a genuine smile. And to be the cause of that smile? He’d do anything to see it again, anything to make that marble facade crack.

“You know I hate to admit it, but I’m quite shit at science, so I may ask for your help a lot,” Simon informed Baz quietly, peering at the side of his face. 

“Then I may ask to be moved,” Baz replied with a smirk. Simon only smiled in return.

“Alright, everyone. Please take out a piece of paper and a pen. We’re having a pop quiz to see how much background knowledge you have,” Professor Snape explained to the class with a bored tone, as he ran a hand through his thick greasy hair to itch his head. There were groans from all around the classroom. Baz sighed heavily before leaning to get himself a sheet of paper and a pen. When he looked back up, Simon sat nervously fidgeting with his hands.

“I didn’t realize we would need supplies!” he exclaimed as Baz shoved the things he had just gotten out in front of Simon.

“It’s the first day of school!” Baz replied.

“Exactly! It’s the first day of school, so why am I doing work?” Simon asked, picking up Baz’s pen and writing his name on the sheet. Baz rolled his dark eyes and huffed.

“You’re an absolute idiot, Snow.”

And for some reason, that made Simon smile, a real, good-natured smile.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> wow thanks for reading! i'm actually really pretty proud of this chapter so yeah. if you have any ideas about where you want this story to go, i'd be happy to hear them!


	3. The First Day - Harry

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Harry's first day of school ends with a surprise!

First day of freshman year and Harry had managed to be put behind Malfoy in every single class. Of course. Malfoy and his stupid gorgeously blond hair.  Malfoy and his perfect ass kissing behavior. Malfoy and his stupid snotty friends. Malfoy and his damn unwillingness to put the past behind him. It was one rejected handshake and it happened three years ago! After Harry had punched his lights out in the seventh grade for making a rude comment about the Weasleys, he started to feel bad about the whole twisted relationship between them. Yeah, sure Draco was a rude brat, but that didn’t give Harry the right to break his nose. His mother had scolded him extensively about it while his father just snickered behind his hands. So he tried to apologize to him, but Draco was having none of it.

_ “I don’t need your pity, Potter. So what? You broke my nose. I deserved it because if I had kept my guard up, you would be the one with the broken nose.” _

_ “No, Malfoy. I don’t think you understand. I-” _

_ “It’s fine, Potter. I don’t care. Just leave me alone.” _

So Harry did. And he tried to stay out of his way. But his whole damn world seemed to revolve around Draco.

The summer after seventh grade, something had shifted in him. He came back to school and he wasn’t a brat anymore. He had apologized to everyone he had been rude to (except for Harry, of course). He tried hard to better himself and his friends. He wasn’t constantly spouting off information that his father had fed him. He had made friends with Luna, of all people! And that’s when Harry had become obsessed.

He had noticed that when Draco smiled (because he smiled now!) he looked so beautiful. His gray eyes twinkled and they were so clear and bright that they looked like mirrors. His form had started to fill out and he wasn’t all lanky and awkward anymore, but lean and tall. He looked happy. And that was how Harry discovered he liked boys.

He wasn’t gay, that’s for sure, but he was definitely bi. And just to confirm, he had slept with a number of people before school had started this year, lots of boys and girls, but none of them really did it for him. The hookups were good. Well, good enough. But every single time, it was always the image of gray eyes and white blonde hair that pushed him over the edge.

And then he came out of the closet over Instagram. Hermione said it was unclassy, but honestly? It was the best way for news to travel fast. Draco didn’t have any social media (that Harry knew of). And he was sure Pansy Parkinson, the biggest gossip in the school would see it eventually and tell Draco. And maybe Draco would hear it and realize that he was gay, like Pansy was always telling everyone he was, and he would realize that all this time he just hadn’t been perceiving his feelings correctly and that he was actually in love with Harry.

But obviously, that hadn’t happened because the first day of school was officially over and Draco hadn’t spared him a glance. But Harry had spared many glances at Draco. He had lost weight, he was scarily skinny and Harry had noticed that he had looked sad. So, of course, Harry shared his concerns with Simon.

Simon Snow was Harry’s best friend, and his only friend to know about his true feelings for Draco. Harry had asked Simon to talk to Draco because the two of them used to be good friends. But when Draco had found out that Simon was also best friends with Harry, he had made him choose between the two of them. So Simon chose Harry because they had known each other longer. Draco didn’t take it personally, and he didn’t hate Simon because how could you? Simon was an angel. He made sure that even though he and Draco weren’t close anymore, to still check up on him every so often.

So yes, Simon had promised that he would talk to Draco. But that didn’t make Harry feel any better. Because yes, he knew that Simon could bring the best out of everyone, and everyone loved him but how could he be certain that Draco was telling the truth? Or that he was even willing to talk and share how he felt?

.:.

Harry thanked the bus driver and quickly scrambled off the bus. He hated taking the bus home but both of his parents were out of town. His father, James Potter, was away on a business trip at the moment and his mother, Lily Potter, was somewhere in Africa helping poor third world countries. They had been gone all summer as well but called every afternoon. His uncles, Remus and Sirius, had been checking up on him all summer but they weren’t here today either. They were off vacationing on some islands. Sirius had declared that they deserved it after worrying over Harry all summer. And there was absolutely no way in hell that Harry was going to stay with his awful Aunt Petunia, Uncle Vernon, and Ickle Dudleykins.

Harry had promised to call his mother, father, Remus and Sirius after his first day, but right now he really just needed a snack and a nap. He went to the freezer, pulled out a Hot Pocket, placed it on a plate and tossed it in the microwave. Punching in 2 minutes, Harry then pulled out his phone and saw that he had 5 messages from Simon.

_ SS: man you were right _

_ SS: draco looks awful _

_ SS: asked him if everything was okay _

_ SS: he didn’t give me much of an answer _

_ SS: sorry that i wasn’t really a help _

Harry sighed as he read the texts. He slowly typed back a response as he thought about what to say.

 

HP: it’s alright

HP: i mean i kinda figured you wouldn’t get much out of him

HP: thanks for trying tho

 

He placed his phone down on the counter just as the microwave beeped. He pulled the Hot Pocket out carefully to let it cool. Harry sighed as he walked over to the ancient landline that was attached to the wall and dialed in his father’s phone number. He should probably call them sooner than later.

“James Potter speaking.” His father’s familiar baritone voice sounded tinny through the old speaker.

“Hey, Dad. It’s me,” Harry answered bored, twisting his finger in the spiraled cord of the phone.

There was a pause before his father exclaimed, “Harry, my boy! How was the first day of high school?”

“It was fine. Not really exciting in the slightest.” 

“Nonsense! Something big must’ve happened! Any news with the Malfoy boy?” Harry could just hear the smirk that was plastered on his father’s face in his voice.

Harry had told his parents as soon as the slightest feeling of him being bisexual had come about. And of course, they were accepting. His father’s two best friends were gay for each other. However, there was some resistance at first when he mentioned Draco’s name, but his family was eventually accepting as long as Harry was happy.

“Dad! No! I told you to drop that. Nothing is probably ever going to happen.”

His father let out a hearty chuckle. “Alright, alright. I’ll drop it. Have you called your mother yet?”

“Not yet. I was going to call her after I called you.”

“Ah, I see you have your priorities straight. Well, I have to go but I’m glad to hear you’re alright. Do call your mother and I’ll see you soon, Harry.”

“Okay. Bye, Dad.” Harry hung up the phone and grabbed his Hot Pocket. He picked up the landline once again and dialed the number his mother had left for him.

“Harry?” Lily’s voice was much less harsh than her husband’s through the phone speaker. Harry grinned.

“Mom!”

“Oh hello, my darling boy! How was your day?”

“It was okay. Nothing super exciting.” He twisted his finger in the cord again, pulling and stretching it.

“Oh, that’s a shame. I would’ve thought high school to be a thrill.” His mother sounded genuinely disappointed.

“Not really, Mom. It’s just school.” Harry could hear loud noises that weren’t his mother coming from her end of the phone. 

“Oh, Harry, I’m sorry, but I’ve got to run. I’ll be home before you know it! I love you very much!”

“Okay. Bye, Mom. Love you! See you soon!”

He hung up the phone and sat at the counter eating his Hot Pocket. He’d called his Uncle Sirius and Uncle Remus later. Let them enjoy their vacation. 

He finished his food and placed the dirty plate in the sink. Grabbing his phone as he left the kitchen, Harry then trudged upstairs to take a nap. He threw his shirt to the floor once he had taken it off, and then he connected his phone to the charger and placed it on the nightstand next to his bed. He hopped in bed, yanked his glasses off and slowly drifted off to sleep.

A couple of hours later, the sound of his phone buzzing woke Harry up. He expected a text from Simon or one of his other friends but instead, he found a Snapchat notification that made his heart stop.  _ Draco Malfoy added you as a friend! _ This had to be a dream or an accident or maybe one of Draco’s friends took his phone and added Harry as a joke. Yeah, that was it. 

Should Harry add him back? Well, it wasn’t even really a question. Of course, he was going to add him back. Just after an acceptable amount of time. Like a minute. Okay, well maybe a minute is too long. But thirty seconds is long enough, right?

Before Harry could stop himself, he opened his phone and added Draco back. Then he immediately shut his phone off and placed it back on his nightstand. Less than a minute later his phone buzzed.  _ Draco Malfoy is typing… _

Oh god. Draco was going to send a message that said Pansy or one of his other friends stole his phone and added Harry and then he was going to comment something like ‘wow, desperate much, potter? you certainly added me back quickly.’

_ from Draco Malfoy _

Oh god. Oh god. Okay. Here goes nothing.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> wow. okay. sorry it took me so long to update! next one should be coming soon!


	4. The First Day - Draco

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> After school Draco has afternoon tea and uncomfortable conversations with his friends. He also starts Snapchatting Potter.

Fuck his friends. They had to go and make Draco feel all guilty and now he was receiving shirtless pics from Potter. Like what the hell?

.:.

They were having afternoon tea in the garden at Draco’s house after school, Pansy, the drama queen, was going on and on about how brave Potter was for coming out in this unaccepting world, which Baz just scoffed at. 

“At least he likes girls, too. He can fake being straight. I can’t.” 

Draco, well actually Pansy, had invited Baz over for tea since he seemed to fit right into their group and didn’t have any other friends. Draco smirked and teased, “Well, no one told you to be gay, Baz.” Baz just rolled his eyes with a smile as he stirred his tea. 

“Well, I still think he is immensely brave,” Pansy defended.

Now Blaise chuckled. “He’s immensely stupid. Why would you put something so private on a platform that’s so public? If I were gay- which I’m not-” Blaise shot with a glare at his friends’ suggestive faces before continuing, “I would never say something about it. Literally, no one cares about who he wants to put his dick in.”

“Or who sticks their dick in him,” Baz added.

“This whole conversation is immensely stupid, in my opinion,” Draco interjected before taking a small sip out of his teacup. “If no one cares who he sticks his dick in or who sticks their dick in him, then why are we having this damn conversation? Honestly! Harry Potter is a stupid brute who doesn’t deserve any of our attention.”

“Draco, why do you have to be so rude to him, darling? What has he ever done to you?” Pansy asked curiously, breaking a biscuit to dip in her tea. 

Draco crossed his arms and falling back into his spoiled child routine, pouted, “He used to bully me. Plus, he rejected me back in the 6th grade.”

“Draco, darling, pettiness does not become you,” Pansy stated, holding her cup out for Blaise to pour her more before he too chimed in. 

“Yeah, Dray, you sound absolutely ridiculous. It happened three years ago! Let it go!” 

Baz shrugged. “It doesn’t really seem like he bullies you anymore. In fact, from what I saw today, he doesn’t even acknowledge you.”

Pansy shook her head vehemently. “No way, Potter totally has the hots for Draco.”

“What are you on about now, Pansy? You crazy slag. Just because Potter has come out doesn’t mean he fancies me,” Draco stated, angrily slamming his teacup onto the table.

“Well, actually since the beginning of last year, I’ve suspected that you make Potter all hot and bothered. I mean, have you seen the way he stares at you, Dray? He practically undresses you with his eyes.”

“Actually, I’ve noticed that too,” Blaise chimed in, setting his empty cup down and waving away Pansy’s offer for more tea. “But I had always thought that it’s because he hated Draco and was trying to stare him down. I guess, what you’re saying makes sense too though.”

“No, it doesn’t!” Draco denied, practically screaming. “Just because someone is gay, doesn’t mean they fancy you! Baz, you’re gay. Do you fancy me? Or Blaise, for that matter?”

“Uhh…” Baz glanced at his new friends' expectant looks awkwardly. “No, not really. I mean you’re both attractive, just not my type.”

“That’s because your type is 5’10 with curly blonde hair and a girlfriend he’s never gonna break up with. Isn’t that right, Baz?” Pansy teased with a shit-eating grin as she elbowed Baz lightly in the ribs.

“Did you tell everyone, Draco?” Baz whined.

“Of course he did,” Blaise answered. “Draco can’t keep a secret to save his life!”

“Which is why I’m surprised Draco hasn’t come out to us yet,” Pansy interjected. All three of his friends gave him a knowing look. 

Under the pressure of all their stares, Draco began to sweat. To be honest, he had begrudgingly thought about being gay a lot in the privacy of his own bedroom when he was contemplating life and had nothing else to think about. But only then. Because his sexuality absolutely did not weigh him down.

See in the past, Pansy had pointed out that that might be the reason why he got so jealous about Harry choosing Weasley instead of him and why he was so hung up about Harry rejecting him. And yeah, maybe, when Pansy had told him this morning about Potter coming out and how people had been hooking up with him all summer, he felt his blood boil, but only probably because Potter was getting some and Draco was not. And maybe he thought about Harry Potter a lot more than a normal person would, and about being his friend. And perhaps Draco thought that Potter looked sort of attractive after a game when he was all sweaty with his messy, unruly thick black locks of hair, and a football uniform with sleeves that fit tightly on his arm muscles and pants that showed off his lean calf muscles. But that didn’t mean he was gay! Because, for example, when he looked at other guys, like Blaise and Baz, or any of his other friends, he didn’t find any of them attractive in the slightest. And he wasn’t assuming that gay guys find all other men attractive, but they typically find more than only one guy slightly attractive, right? And anyway, admiring one’s features and wishing there was something more between the two didn’t mean that he was attracted or even liked the raven-haired boy. 

And even if he were to decide to do or say something about what he felt, what would his parents think? So, yeah. There’s no way that this was happening. At least, not today. Not right now. Maybe when he had more time to think about it.

“I’m not gay,” Draco answered flatly to his friends curious and hopeful faces.

“Alright,” Pansy conceded with a sigh. “You’re not gay. But that doesn’t mean you can’t be nice to Potter.”

“Well, what if he takes it the wrong way? What if he thinks that I heard he was bi and hooking up with everyone from our school and that I want a piece of the action now?”

“Right after Simon Snow,” Blaise began with a quick glance at Baz who was now blushing like crazy, “Harry Potter is the definition of a morally correct person. Even if he took you being nice to him the wrong way, if you were to shut that train of thought down, he would never act upon his supposed feelings for you. He’s too good.”

“You should reach out to him, Dray,” Pansy said softly. “It’s the least you could do. You always talk about how he bullied you, but it’s not exactly like you were an angel.”

“Being nice to him won’t be the end of the world, Draco. It’s not like being nice ever hurt anybody,” Baz offered with a kind and encouraging smile.

Draco looked at all his friends. They all looked so supportive and that angered him. How dare they team up against him and make him feel bad? Yeah, sure, whatever, they weren’t wrong and they actually made a good point, but still how dare they?

“Fine.”

.:.

After a little while longer, the group had finished with their afternoon tea and their parents were calling them to come home since it was getting close to dinnertime.

As soon as they left and Draco was sitting comfortably in his bed, he opened Snapchat. Pansy had texted him a screenshot of Potter’s snapcode with a text that said  _ ‘so you can add him whenever you feel comfortable enough to’ _ . So he saved the screenshot to his phone and had opened the  _ ‘Add Friends’ _ screen.

But now he was faced with the dilemma of trying to decide if he was actually comfortable enough to add him. His head thunked against his headboard and he let out a heavy sigh in defeat. No time like the present, right? Might as well get this over with. 

Draco scanned the code and Potter’s Snapchat popped up. The bright purple ‘Add Friend’ button seemed to be taunting him. His heart was thudding loudly in his chest. Why was he so nervous? He didn’t even like Potter. He didn’t. He really didn’t. It wasn’t a big deal. He was just being dramatic. His thumb hovered over the button and he could hear the blood rushing around in his body. This was getting ridiculous. 

He clicked  _ ‘Add Friend’ _ and as it loaded he held his breath. 

_ ‘Added!’ _ popped up on the screen. He let out his breath. Okay. Now what? He turned his phone off. It’d probably be a while before Potter added him back. Because despite what his friends said about Potter liking him, Draco wasn’t about to let himself feel hopeful that Potter didn’t completely hate- 

His phone buzzed and he saw the notification.  _ ‘Harry Potter added you as a friend!’ _

Oh, wow. Um. Okay. Well, that was fast.  _ Now _ what? Should he send him a picture? A message? Or just leave it as it was?

He decided that a message would be sufficient. But what to say? What to say? What do you say to someone you haven’t talked to in over a year and who your last words to were something along the lines of ‘leave me the fuck alone’?

How about something short and simple?  _ ‘Evening, Potter.’  _ Really? That’s it? Potter’s message popped up onto the screen.

_ ‘ummm… evening malfoy?’  _

Draco blushed. Yeah, it was kind of a lame intro.

_ ‘Wow, eloquent as ever, Potter.’ _

_ ‘well forgive me but i’m not really sure what i’m supposed to say’ _

_ ‘Well then, I’ll start.’ _

He hesitated. What was he supposed to say? 

_ ‘It’s come to my attention that I was a proper arsehole to you back in middle school. And as you may or may not know, I’ve been trying to make amends with those I was unkind to. So this is me, making amends. I apologize for being rude when we were younger.’ _

His heart started racing again. His hands were shaky and sweaty. And it felt like many eternities before Potter finally responded.

_ ‘oh _

_ wow _

_ um yeah _

_ okay _

_ i forgive you malfoy _

_ i mean it’s not like i was nice to you either lol  _

_ so i’m sorry too’ _

Draco smiled slightly and he felt his heart start to slow back to its normal rate. 

_ ‘Well, I’m glad that we’ve settled this.’ _

_ ‘yeah _

_ same’ _

Now what? Draco didn’t know how to continue on. 

_ ‘So… how was your first day?’ _

Apparently, small talk was the way.

_ ‘oh _

_ um _

_ pretty good malfoy _

_ actually, i think you’re in some of my classes’ _

Actually, now that Draco thought about it, Potter was in practically all of his classes.

_ ‘Oh, yeah. I think I am.’ _

Goodness, this was just so awkward. Being nice is hard. 

_ ‘...yeah’ _

Okay, new plan. No more talking. Draco opened the camera and tilted his head to his best angle. He gave a slight smile which looked more like a smirk, but it worked. He didn’t look completely awful. However, Draco felt a little weird sending a picture out of nowhere so he added a caption,  _ ‘We should start a streak.’ _

It was about a minute before Potter replied. The caption just said  _ ‘ok’ _ . But the picture, gosh, was a picture of half his face and part of his torso. Potter’s jaw was sharp and Draco could see his collarbone and part of his chest. And fuck if that wasn’t a nice collarbone. He felt himself blushing slightly. He couldn’t deny that Potter was attractive but Draco was a man who was secure enough in his masculinity to own up to the fact that he found one of his acquaintances not awful looking.

Draco sent a picture with his eyes rolled and a caption that said,  _ ‘Have some decency, Potter.’ _

Potter’s next reply was unfortunately clothed, but he had a smirk that somehow made him look more attractive. The caption made Draco’s heart stop:  _ ‘maybe you should lose some malfoy ;)’ _

Was this flirting? Was Potter flirting with him? Draco didn’t know how to respond, so he just left Potter on read.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> thanks for reading! new chapter coming soon hopefully!


End file.
